We're seeing more and more devices come to the market with USB Type-C charging ports instead of MicroUSB. The new standard is reversible, more convenient, and potentially faster and more powerful than the previous Type-A one. (David Ruddock wrote a detailed explanation that I advise you to read in order to understand the intricate details of this new connector.) However, it is creating a bit of a ruffle with consumers who are now opening up their brand new Nexus 5X boxes, for example, only to find a Type-C charger and a single cable included. In order to charge those shiny phones from computers and traditional Type-A chargers, they have to buy new cables and adapters.

But not all USB Type-C accessories are created equal as Google engineer Benson Leung has discovered. He has been working on several products from the Pixel line that use the Type-C connector and thus knows the standard and its specification requirements very well. Upon testing some third-party Type-C cables and adapters, he and his team have noticed that a few of these are not compatible with the standard and are potentially dangerous to your device's ports.

Benson has started reviewing these products on Amazon, praising those that adhere to the specifications and work as intended with the Chromebook Pixel and other Type-C devices, and pointing out those that deviate from the standard and thus either don't work at all or do but could damage your hub or charger on the Type-A end. He has gone through 7 cables and adapters now, only endorsing the $19.99 Belkin and the $14.99 iOrange-E cables. And it seems that other companies are already contacting him to send their own products for testing, so you should see more options on his review list soon. In the meantime, if you want some Type-C to Type-A cables, you may be better off picking one of his recommended choices.

What I meant, and I agree that it is poorly said and also far fetched, is that the "perfect" standard would also standardize the end result. If some are not well made and are a danger to some device, than somewhere, somehow, a part of the standard was not met.

But again, I do realize it is far fetched.

Matt

Exactly, part of the standard was not met. There will always be failures. That doesn't mean there are multiple standards or something wrong with a standard.

But the USB consortium does exactly that, they set the standard of all USB cables including the end result (I have no idea what you mean by that too so my guess is charging speed data transfer etc..). A cable that fails to meet the standard does not make it its own standard. It just means it's a bad cable.

The XKCD is referring to something like streaming codecs or say a new wireless charging standard that wants to be "the standard".

There are actually several charging standards that could be followed. There is a "USB Battery Charging" standard (and its 3 versions), "USB Power Delivery" (which has 2 versions, and each version has 2 revisions of the spec, making 4), then there's "USB Type-C" (which has 2 versions). Additionally, Qualcomm has its proprietary QuickCharge standard (which has 3 versions), so there are 12 USB charging standards that can be supported. Considering all of the charging standards that exist, I'd say this comic applies.

Of course he will not review anything that is "cheap". Just like the MFI racket/endorsement, Google only want pricey cables & adapters from tier 1 manufacturers and/or ones that are impossible to find....or just buy their own branded overpriced stuff!

No, they don't have the same manufacturer. I only linked to the Cable Matters review because the problem with Aukey's cable is the same as the cable from Cable Matters, and pretty much every other USB A-to-C cable available on Amazon at the moment.

BrandoHD

Thank you very much for this article

TriguyRN

Good to know

runtd

I would just like to point out that his only other review of anything on Amazon was the Orange Box soundtrack and that's awesome.

rjyanj

Anyone have any luck in getting a refund if they've purchased one of these cables from Amazon?

andy_o

I'm gonna try one right now for the Techmatte adapters. I don't see why they wouldn't accept it.

Danny Cotton

Yeah I will be trying tonight for those as well. Hopefully it goes well.

andy_o

They accepted the return, no problem. Filed a return request via Amazon, who then told me they'd request it from the seller, then got the email confirming that it was accepted.

carol argo

Same problem as Usb . But they weren't tested, same as any hardware, be it keyboard screen etc. Why you think so many complain. For the lol of it? Nha most of the time ,if a product wasn't looked at by the brand (say google)then you can be sure mistake happen. That is why , making the number one phone is easy, but supplying the assembler , chip forge,battery maker, etc etc with the methodology sheet (wich need to be in metric since nobody use imperial outside Usa)
So if your engineer didn't use the standard screw size etc it might add cost. Like some non removable battery , it add cost because it isn't the majority . The rest of the world get removable battery so it's cheaper to make produce removable battery cellphone.

tmartin

Yikes, I got the Kupx micro usb adapters. They've been working fine without incident but I may try to send them back.

Alex Olen

Man, mine is Orzly...

Brian Ortiz

But what about a review of the first party USB - C cables? i want to know how much power it can output.

Yes, these look like the best A to C cables I've seen I like the reversible A side, if these would be in spec I would buy quite a few.

Donatom3

If you go to his Google+ link he just posted that the OnePlus cables are out of spec. I'm glad I didn't buy multiples of those like some people did on xda. Too bad since they looked like nice cables.

"+Rajesh Handa , +Guille Laca, +Jared Valles, +Steven Lefkoff, unfortunately I have bad news about the One+ cables. The One+ cables, despite ostensibly being from a 1st party phone maker, are out of spec. They use an incorrect 3A configuration as well.

I haven't reviewed them on Amazon because they aren't for sale there directly from One+﻿"

Apparently some of these adapters/cables are hacked so they can pull 3A and that is not ok with the specs and is dangerous. I'm glad he's pointing it out cause it could be seen as a "feature" otherwise.

Cory S

Yeah, I see it as a feature for the informed consumer as well. I remember how annoying all those car chargers were that shipped with data cables and would only provide USB 500ma power.

h4rr4r

The informed customer would buy the correct devices. Or make their own. Not some hacked cable.

Cory S

If I have a 3 amp type a power source, then this "hacked" cable would be the correct device.

h4rr4r

No, it would not. That still does not meet the spec.

AOSPrevails

Wait till you fry your phone with one of those out of spec cables then start blaming google.

Matt

The damage wouldn't be to the phone. The problem with the cable is trying to draw to much from the source, not give to much to the destination.

Cory S

It couldn't harm the phone, although harm to the transmitting adapter is possible, which could be far worse if it is a computer.

Grayson

True, but I have personally never seen a power source (battery or charging adapter) that is rated to provide 3A via USB A. I guess if there is one, then the out of spec cable would be OK to use.

thekendog10

If you read one of his replies, he pretty much says that 3A is only intended for Type C to C or a captive cable. I had been wondering about this too. Glad he clarified it for me.

Dante_of_the_Inferno

I would point you to the power supply for the original ECS LIVA PC. That one uses a USB Type-A connector with a USB Micro Type-A to supply the tiny desktop with 3 amps at 5 volts for 15 watts. However, it is indeed a VERY rare device.

anyone?

Lol, he def ripped them a new one. Had sources and quotes and everything. The manufacturer sounds pissed. Anyone else think Google could start sell USB type C approved items? Like OEMs can wear a badge of honor if its Google approved. They don't have to be, but it would just mean a guarantee of the cable working as it should.

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Andy Williams

They will just take it as a reason to charge more. Why they would invest in making a cable yet not make it to standard specs doesn't make sense.
I would imagine at bare minimum I would make something that adhered to standard design. There's likely a consortium that says "this is what can be called an xyz" yet they make something else and use the same name... that's false advertising.

DT

There is already what this person suggests, and it's the USB authority. These guys are paying for a license and they have to adhere to the standard. If enough of a stink was made they could lose their ability to sell and USB devices.

Best response was this one:
"I love how everyone is just eating up this self proclaimed "Google Engineer". I honestly call BS on this. I mean, I could always say, Hi, I'm Ben Franklin and I work for NASA and the NSA and Burger King all at once"

If you check out Cable Savage, they are selling a cable with a 10k ohms resistance. But USB-C standards says you must use a 56k Ohms one so that the chargers or hubs, even computers on the A side of the cable will not draw too much power which could damage them.

Just yesterday I ordered 3x Kupx micro usb adapters, then find out that of course, they're bunk :( It appears that no one makes a proper micro USB USB-C adapter other than these rebrands, which are of course out of spec. OnePlus offers one, but it costs WAY too much to ship.

I really wanted to just purchase a small, inexpensive adapter like this so I could continue using my micro USB cables. Oh well, I suppose the wait continues for now...

andy_o

I got the Techmatte 2-pack that he has reviewed. Just yesterday I got an email from them asking for feedback/satisfaction. I haven't even had time to open the package, but I'll be returning it, make sure to mention it to them, hopefully they can rectify this, seems like they should be able to at least if they manufacture the adapters.

Thanks man! Bought mine from DX.com (first time purchasing from there), so hopefully they will accept returns. Otherwise, if I'm stuck, I may try to crack it open and replace the resistor per the standard 56 kΩ that Benson had noted.

Leonardo Baez

They will, but you may have to pay to return and they only will give you store credit

andy_o

I got mine from Amazon, I keep buying from them partly because of the great returns system.

Leo

Thanks for the article, great source of information, and definitely appreciated

blindexecutioner

I bought some cheap adapters I will not use. They have very thin, flimsy plastic on the the end of the adapter that easily breaks and could get lodged into the port. Shame on google for not including a USB C to A cable with the Nexus 5. It isn't a cheap phone for the specs you get.

He should review the monoprice USB C to A cable. It looks identical to the Google cable.

Tony G.

I needed another charger and cable for my 6P. I know they are over-priced, but to play it safe I bought them from Google.

Oh I have the 6P, that has the cord embedded into the charger, I figured the 5X did as well.

Erik Tomlinson

My 6P came with a black charger and a black cable with slimmer ends than the 5X cable pictured above, but the charger also has a type-C socket on it (not a captive cable).

Ryan

Probably the same one they are selling on the site for $25. Guess US LG buyers are lucky/unlucky. Is yours at least longer than a meter?

dcdttu

I wonder about the Monoprice ones... My friend that works there said that they're from the same company that Google gets theirs from.

Grayson

Me too. They certainly look the exact same as the ones in the Google Store, but they say 3 A, so I'm a bit wary. The one in the Google Store says 3 A as well, but Benson said that is a mistake and he is looking into it.

dcdttu

I've been using the Type B to Type C one and it says 'charging rapidly' but I honestly don't know if that's any indication it's made correctly.

fscked

I don't think saying 3A is technically incorrect, the spec doesn't say that A to C cables can't do 3A. Just that they need to have resistance set so that the device knows not to draw 3A until it confirms that the power supply is set up for it.

From his comment:
"The value of Rp shall indicate an
advertisement of Default USB Power (See Table 4-13), even though the cable itself can carry
3 A. This is because the cable has no knowledge of the capabilities of the power source, and
any higher current is negotiated via USB BC 1.2 or by proprietary means."

TomsDisqusted

I saved a lot of money with Monoprice, but I've also got some dud cables and the hassle wasn't worth the savings, so I stopped buying from them.

But I too would be interested in his assessment.

Robin

The Reviewer explicitely recommended Monoproce cables (besides the Google ones)
I guess they are identical

In the meantime, if you want some Type-C to Type-A cables you should learn a bunch about them and start reviewing them because it sounds like this Benson guy is about to get a bunch of free cables to test.

Grayson

Good thing the iOrange is the one I chose when I ordered a few days ago! Although I still need a shorter 3 foot cable for my car and he hasn't approved any 3 footers, except the one sold in the Google Store I guess, but it's been sold out.

Max

My Anker desktop charger has been shutting off USB ports almost on a daily basis after a few hours charging my Nexus 6P and I guess this was the reason, I already opened a return for the Orzly ones (that are out of specs according to Benson) and contacted Tripp-Lite to get their official response regarding this issue for some other cables and adapters (yes they make some of these cables and adapters).

Shi Qiu

And at the bottom of the review list, this was a triumph!

Josh Jacobi

I have been using my 5x and the iOrange-e A to C cable with Android Auto. It
connects with no problem and charges but very slow, so slow that using maps
or music through AA causes the battery to trickle down instead of gain a
charge, I didn't have this problem with my Nexus 5. Anyone else having a
problem with 5x and Android Auto?

Either the cable will work or it won't. I've ordered some great cables from china in the last 3 years that work flawlessly and they cost pennies on the dollar compared with the rip off prices on Amazon etc. All the cables I purchased worked great on many phones I have had. Now I have 5X and 6P and I ordered lots of cables for the car and house.

Cat Astrophy

It's a bit insane for just CABLES to cost this much. I expect that from adapters but for every spec in the past I've been used to buy in bulk from monoprice for dirt cheap.

Thomas Cai Jinzhan

Because they are new. Remember when HDMI was still a new thing can cost about $80-$100 back then? I did.

PiLoT85

Why doesnt android police disclose its use of affiliate links in the article? out of curiosity

Vincenza Wilkerson

‎‎

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when u think about it, we haven't come all that far, i mean we have had better ideas than a rectangular cable to plug into our phones, we have also invented earphones which u can place into your phone in any direction cause they're cylindrical, why don't we design a similar cylindrical earphone plug if we are looking ease of use with usb?, we can have as many contacts as we want....

Ezzy

$20 for a USB cable...yay, we've gone full Apple now.

Jonathan Tutor

did no one else just glue old pennies to their 2.4A charger and hope for some decent heat dissipation?